While I understand there is a shortage in dental hygiene in Virginia, I am opposed allowing a dental assistant with expanded training scale patients REGARDLESS of the perio status or pocket depth. I feel a more appropriate action would be to encourage or give your assistants motivation to go to hygiene school to receive adequate training and knowledge regarding periodontal classification, prevention, and treatment planning. You can teach anyone how to scale but it is the training and education that hygienist has that they can modify a patients treatment regarding medications, nutritional deficiencies, oral systemic links ect.  As most of us know most unstable perio patients start as out teenagers with a little gingivitis. It’s not just the scaling that treats the patient but the overall treatment / prevention plan.